As part of the second wave of gratitude, I will be posting each day, for the next 42 days, a list of things for which I am grateful.  This is a partial list I composed immediately upon awakening this morning:

~ My dear sweet friend from Canada (who emailed me just this morning) - such a surprise!

~ Having a comfortable bed and pillow to sleep on.

~ No more pain in my teeth and gums (braces, ugh), but I am grateful for those as well

~ Having a job that allows a flexible work schedule so I can spent time with my spiritual endeavours

~ VERY thankful for ACIM.

~ VERY, VERY grateful I found Zaadz and the friends I've made here...and for finding a Zaadz friend here to discuss this awesome ACIM stuff!

~ Grateful that I have the desire and motivation to 'open my eyes' and 'see' beyond myself...to see a great big beautiful world...and see the need to LIVE in this world, not just exist in it.

For more about my day, go to the pod:  World Gratitude Gathering. 

By flooding our bodily waters with Love and Gratitude, graceful waves will ripple into all of Creation, e-motionally projecting a super-charged vibration, allowing intended manifestations to BE.

I AM grateful for knowing that I AM this powerful, connected and divine.

I WILL give thanks, now, in advance for the manifestation of the following intention:  

   ~~~ To BE the change I wish to see in the world.~~~Gandhi~~~ 

The lesson of Gratitude for Friday the 16th (I'm a day behind getting this blogged) is to focus thoughts and energy toward 12 people who have had a profound influence or have inspired you in some way. 

My list would, oddly enough, include people who, before I began studying ACIM, would not be considered inspiring, but these people and situations have actually been my best teachers.  It has taken a considerable amount of time and effort to learn this...but GRATEFULLY...the learning has (and still is) taking place.

The suggested list is inspired by the 12 apostles of Jesus. 

As I compile my list, I'm finding it almost impossible to limit it to12.... 

As I contemplate today's message of Gratitude I am reminded of how fractals and sacred geometry illustrate the birth and development of ALL things - on this planet - in the universe.  Such parallels are found between the development of an embryo and expansion of the universe.  This certainly gives new meaning to the phrase to 'look within'!

Sacred geometry is where the 'mystery of all creation' meets science - a concept I knew NOTHING about before walking down the path of Gratitude a few months ago!

Looking at the development of an embryo: it begins as a single cell, that divides into two. Those two cells then divide into four (a tetrhedron within a sphere)...the four become eight....then divide into eight more to become a cube within a cube....

Some portion of our body goes through this re-birth process every day.

It is this ability to be re-born, to re-new ALL aspects of my life, as needed,  for which I am grateful for today.

Today was busier than I had anticipated...breathing -  a definite requirement!

Concentrated breathing...thinking about how each part of my body feels as I beathe in, then imagining where my breath goes after I breathe out...is THE most relaxing exercise I know.

And as I breathe, I am so grateful that I CAN breathe...I see and work with many individuals each who cannot  breathe without supplemental oxygen or have other breathing difficulties.

With each breath I also have  immense gratitude for the ability to be 'in tune' with my body...for being able to recognize 'it's' language...to answer it's call...to respond to it with whatever may be lacking...to naturally return to a state of equilibrium. 

Is my cup full? Some would say that a cup that is full would be the sought after ideal...an indication of plenty and abundance.  But then a cup that is full leaves no room for anything else to be added.

If my cup is empty, there would be those who would look upon this as an indication of need...that I was lacking 'something'.

To me, an empty cup holds the promise of what will be, for only an empty cup can receive the liquid of life.

Today, I am grateful for the opportunity to give to others...and from this giving comes the opportuntiy to  receive gifts from others....my supply once again replenished and ready for giving...again. 

The title above pretty well says it all...

With Love comes Respect...Love + Respect = Gratitude.

When we learn HOW to Love ourselves, loving others...everyone...becomes as natural as breathing.  Respecting ourselves again, leads to the inevitable result of respecting others...always.

I am so very grateful for the friendships I have made in such a short time here at Zaadz..

I am thankful for the establishment of such an intelligent, dynamic, creative and resourceful group of individuals

And even more thankful for being a part of it! 

Never thought of using the words  'Hug' and Gratitude in the same sentence...o.k., it is an incomplete sentence, but the words are placed together just the same.

Hugging, or a form of,  is something I do, without even thinking about it,  to most everyone I come in contact with.  And have done this daily, and for so many years that I have begun to take this gesture for granted.

Today I am grateful for being able to move my arms to hug another.

I am grateful for being able to receive hug(s) from others.

It is my wish for the world that each of us become more 'in touch' with ourselves...and in return, be able to reach out and touch another's life...and eventually all lives will have been touched and blessed in a most positive way.

When this is done, Gratitude can then take it's rightful place at the top of life's priorities. 

I've let myself get distracted and I am 2 days behind on my mission to post 'something' on Gratitude every day...but as 'they' say, better late than never.

As I travel this journey along the path of Gratitude, I find I don't really have to 'Seek' for things to be grateful for.  Studying ACIM is a reminder of the impermanence of all this in this seemingly world.  

If I fail to recognize and appreciate what is laid out before me today, it may well not be here tomorrow for me to do so.

I am ever thankful for finding a friend here to discuss ACIM.  Now when I have questions, I have someone who will not only answer, but has questions too...and is at basically the same spot on this path as I...though farther ahead, which is good.  I respond better when I'm moving toward a light!  

Now it's time for me to  'get a grip'  not just on gratitude, but my thoughts, my priorities, my goals and dreams.

I've had a restless feeling for about 5-6 months...nothing too strong, just enough to make me realize I need to be paying more attention to myself.

It's easy for me to neglect myself and I know better than to do this.  When I allow this to happen,  I'll 'think' everything is going along o.k., only to wake up one day and find myself asking, "What am I doing this for?" or,  "This isn't right for me".

This neglect invariably stems from the fear to look within...for once I look, I am then compelled to respond to what I 'see'.  This could result in a change, a movement out of my comfort zone...oooo!  Scary!

As my 'Teacher' pointed out earlier today, 'Corrective learning always begins with the awakening of spirit, and the turning away from the belief in physical sight.' '...the Holy Spirit cannot see error, and is capable only of looking beyond it to the defense of Atonement.'

'Everything that results from spiritual awareness is merely channelized toward correction'

'Discomfort is aroused only to bring the need for correction into awareness.'

'The fear of healing arises in the end from an unwillingness to accept unequivocally that healing is necessary.'

I am so grateful for having received this reminder! 

Everything in the universe moves in a spiral direction...the planets around the sun, comets, our heads 'spin' with excitement.

Today, I thought my house was going to spin...as if I were in Kansas, with Dorothy, Toto, et al.

We had 3 separate storms today, and very erratic temperature changes.   The last storm, which blew in around 7:00 PM, brought with it heavy rain, (blowing horizontally), thunder, lightning, strong winds and hail...WHILE the sun was shining!

The satelite signal on both my T.V. and radio were lost, and the weather radar online showed this area to be partly sunny with mild temps!  Well, not at MY house!

I later found out that this area had not a tornado, but  rather, the next best thing, what they call straight line winds!

In any event, I am SOooo grateful the 'Entopic' potential, which is great in this area, did not manifest itself as such, after all, Dorothy, this ISN'T Kansas...it's ARkansas!

The Heart of Gratitude, like the heart within our body, is one of endless motion.

The energy it creates is what sustains us...keeps us alive.

When our heart is used to carry the experiential effects of believing in the ego, it tends to feel heavy, tired, hard or uncertain.

When our heart holds hatred,  it feels terror striking at it, and feels the mark of death upon it. 

But when we recognize the need to open our heart and let God come rushing in, our heart can then be renewed.  It can be glad, thankful and at peace.

Underneath this changeable heart is what you might call our true heart,  which has never changed since God created us.  And so, the peace of God still abides in this heart.

Today I am grateful for having a healthy heart, a happy heart, a heart filled with enough love to be shared with all I come into contact...and beyond! 

Upon arrival in physical time we daily change;  Re-arranging shape, form and feature.               Our bodies growing by divine design to support our wishes, dreams and adventures supreme.

From birth on, all dimensions change in our physical frame...except one....the EYE.

From first blink to final wink, this window of time remains one size, offering a steady view of timely life

In order to remember this:

It's what you choose to see that changes, not just the view.

I am grateful for all things that make it possible for me to live in a civilized manner, even though I complained about it earlier.  I am grateful that I am able to earn money, that purchased a  vehicle,  that allowed me to drive to the grocery store, to buy food that keeps me from going hungry, that prevents me from getting cranky.  But then, this crankiness all started with the thought of having to go to the store!  The circle of crankiness!

It's not just what I choose to see, but how I choose to see, that really makes all the difference. 

By late last night I found myself not feeling well grounded.  My energy level the lowest in a while, yet my feelings of gratitude for EVERYTHING that had happened during the day was overwhelming.   It was as if my body could not contain all the feelings I had experienced that day...everything from elation to surprise to grief and the forgetfulness of Who I Am!

So many emotions, so many extremes...I have not experienced a day like that in YEARS!

Yet, I am grateful...so very grateful for having the tools to safely navigate such uneven terrain.

No matter what happens, I know HOW to SOMEHOW keep my feet planted firmly on the ground...the soles of my feet directly connecting me to the earth.

Our bodies are animated earth, embracing Love's light.                                                Our feet ~ the seat of inderstanding                                                                                   And platforms for graceful landing                                                                                   Give us the ability to quickly shift, to raise our view,                                                        To travel,  dance, and explore the (k)new.

                                                  ~~~ Stacey Robyn ~~~         

I'm feeling a bit more centered now, catching up with my daily gratitude blog.  The past two days have been a lesson in patience, humility, thoughtfulness, gratitude, elation, sadness, questioning, joy,...a real mixed bag.

Rather than taking the route of wanting to see a change in someone or something else, each 'lesson'  has been a gentle reminder  to first just be thankful for the situation, and,then recognize that  if a change needs to be made, it should be 'I' that changes.

That is in fact a much easier change to make!  I'm in WAY more control of myself than anyone or anything else anyway!
 
I am also so very thankful for hearing from my special friend from Canada today...another source of inspiration and connection!